What stands out worked out from the figures below

China has the most affordable homes ($240k median).

Raymond has the most people working from home (32.3%).

What matters to you?

Pick a few. We’ll pull those rows to the top and mark which town comes out ahead on each. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Raising kidsAffordabilityOwning a homeShort commuteWorking from homeYounger crowdSettled, older crowdGrowing town

Measure	China	Raymond
People
Population	4,526Lowest	4,610Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+1.8%Lowest ME: +2.6%	+2.3%Highest ME: +2.6%
Median age	40.9±5.9Lowest 9% below ME	47.3±4.1Highest 6% above ME
	Raymond and China are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	20.4%±5.1Highest ME: 18.1%	19.1%±4.9Lowest ME: 18.1%
	China and Raymond are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	21.4%±4.4Lowest ME: 22.4%	22.2%±5.5Highest ME: 22.4%
	Raymond and China are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	31.9%Lowest ME: 36.2%	49.3%Highest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.6%±1.6Lowest ME: 5.8%	3.5%±2.1Highest ME: 5.8%
	Raymond and China are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$96,309±$12kHighest 29% above ME	$88,194±$20kLowest 18% above ME
	China and Raymond are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$240,000±$37kLowest 19% below ME	$395,800±$42kHighest 33% above ME
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$965±$397 15% below ME
Property taxmedian, yearly	$2,535Lowest 17% below ME	$3,139Highest 3% above ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	10.6%±25.1Lowest ME: 48.4%	38.3%±62.5Highest ME: 48.4%
	Raymond and China are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	6%Highest ME: 10.7%	5.3%Lowest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	91.8%Highest ME: 74.3%	89.7%Lowest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1981Highest 4 yrs newer than ME	1976Lowest 1 yr older than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	30 minLowest 21% above ME	37 minHighest 50% above ME
Work from home	12.6%±4.6Lowest ME: 15.9%	32.3%±11.3Highest ME: 15.9%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#27 of 133 in ME	#112 of 133 in ME
School district	RSU 18	RSU 14
High school in town	None in town	None in town
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

ME average · Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2020–2024; 2010 & 2020 decennial census; NCES Common Core of Data. “±” is the Census margin of error. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. School rank compares math and reading proficiency against the state average.